Committee hears bill to protect minors who appear in monetized social-media content; measure fails to advance

The Senate Judiciary Committee considered House Bill 1975, which would create recordkeeping and compensation requirements for adults who monetize content featuring minors and would provide a civil remedy for minors whose images were used without required records or trust-account compensation.

Representative Zach Grammick (recorded in the hearing as Zach Grammick; Representative Gramlich was also referenced) presented the bill, telling the committee, "Children cannot give informed consent to be filmed on social media, period." The proposal would apply only when content is monetized and met specific thresholds: compensated content in which a minor appears for a portion of material and the content creator receives at least $15,000 in the previous 12-month period. The bill would require the adult content creator to place the minor's share of earnings in a trust the minor could access upon turning 18 or upon emancipation and to retain records (age documentation, minutes featured, compensation details) until the minor reaches adulthood.

Supporters said the measure targeted commercial exploitation of minors and would exclude ordinary family posts that are not monetized. Committee members asked detailed questions about how a civil claim would operate, who could sue, and how the statute would apply when multiple adults or non-parent content creators are involved. Representative Grammick said the bill applied to adults who profit from minors' images and that the threshold and recordkeeping provisions were intended to limit the scope.

Committee debate included concerns about timing and the technical complexity of enforcement. After discussion and a voice vote, the chair announced the bill did not pass in the committee.